No. 19 Football Concludes Season in Snowy NAIA FCS Second Round
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
#19 Saint Francis (10-3) | 0 | 13 | 0 | 7 | 20 |
|
#1 Grand View (11-0) | 6 | 35 | 14 | 7 | 62 |
DES MOINES, Iowa - The No. 19 University of Saint Francis (Ind.) football team fell to the No. 1 Grand View University in the NAIA Football Championship Series Second Round held at a snowy Mediacom Stadium in Des Moines, Iowa.
A nine-yard pass from the Vikings' quarterback put Grand View on the scoreboard first, with the score at 6-0 at the end of the first quarter. The Cougars responded early in the second quarter when Joshua Kulka connected with Adjaye Dandridge for a 30-yard touchdown pass. Austin Deleon successfully made the point-after attempt, putting Saint Francis ahead 7-6. Less than three minutes later, Grand View answered with a five-yard rushing touchdown. Saint Francis added six more points to the board with a 32-yard touchdown from Dandridge, but the Vikings did not let the snowy weather conditions slow them down as they were able to score five more times in the second quarter, making the score 41-13 at halftime.
In the second half, the Cougars struggled to regain their momentum as the Vikings extended their lead to 62-13 with 8:30 left in the fourth quarter. Braylen Gillard cut Grand View's lead to 62-20 with a one-yard rushing touchdown in the fourth quarter, but the Cougars' attempt at a comeback fell short as Grand View won Saturday's game to remain undefeated on the season at 11-0 and advance to the NAIA FCS Quarterfinals.
The Cougars finished with 351 total yards of offense on Saturday. Kulka completed 18 of 34 passing attempts with 311 yards and two interceptions. Dandridge caught 11 passes for 227 yards and two touchdowns, finishing with an average of 20.6 yards per reception. Gillard led SF on the ground with 36 yards on 14 carries.
Defensively, Saint Francis recorded 45 total tackles. Four Cougars finished with four tackles on the day, including Elijah Hunter, Gregory Holmes III, Jaydin Evans and Nate Johnson. Evans also added a 10-yard sack, while Holmes, Johnson, Marquise Cross and Tamarris Springfield contributed to four tackles for a loss of 20 yards.
Saint Francis football concludes the 2025 season with an overall record of 10-3 and a 4-1 record in the Mid-State Football Association (MSFA) Midwest League.
Founded in 1890 in the Catholic Franciscan tradition, the University of Saint Francis offers more than 60 undergraduate, graduate and doctoral programs through the College of Health Sciences and the College of Arts, Sciences, and Business. In addition to its traditional programs, Saint Francis designs focused curricula for working adults in Fort Wayne, Crown Point, Lafayette and online. Saint Francis Downtown houses the music technology program while offering enhanced internship and networking opportunities for students. The University of Saint Francis, recognized as an NAIA Five-Star Champion of Character institution, has 21 athletic programs boasting two individual and four team NAIA national championships. More than 1,900 students from a broad geographic region attend Saint Francis.
